Really?

As we all know by now, president Obama gave his first State of The Union speech last night. Matthews, who appeared on network TV shortly after the speech, said of the president:

"I was trying to think about who he was tonight. And uh, it's interesting. He is post-racial, by all appearances. You know, I forgot he was black tonight for an hour....

"I was watching, I said, 'wait a minute!' He's an African-American guy in front of a bunch of other white people and there he is president of the United States and we've completely forgotten that tonight -- completely forgotten it!"

Watch the video below.


I'm baffled at how some of these people make it to get where they are in their careers. I mean, come on REALLY? That was the first thing that popped in your head to say?! You had to of known they were going to get you for it! I'm thinking maybe we should elect Tracy Morgan for president next election so no one gets it twisted. What do you guys think?



Clearing the air...

Chris Matthews Explains the "I Forgot He Was Black Comment"

Chris Matthews clarified his statement on Rachel Maddow's MSNBC show shortly after he made the remark, on the evening of January 27, 2010. Matthews asked to address "what I mentioned earlier tonight." Maddow allowed him to continue. Matthews then went on to talk about "how far we've come in the past year" and praised Obama for "taking us beyond black and white in our politics" in just the last year.

Ok Chris I get it. But still, what you said last night was really ghetto, and for a minute there... I forgot you were white!

I-M

Congrats!

FOUR HOMEY AWARD NOMINATIONS!



Artist of the Year
Best EP
Best Alternative Song (And She Said it With a Straight Face)
Best Lead Singer

Revolution, I Love You landed FOUR Homey Award nominations last Sunday when Mr. Mark Rogers leaked some of the nominations out during his weekly Hometown Heroes radio show. Congratulations guys! What's interesting is that these boys are just getting started! They are currently recording their second EP entitled “We Choose to go to the Moon.” It's set to release sometime this Summer, 2010. I've heard it :P yep I'm special. I got a sneak peek a couple of weeks ago when I visited their studio. Pure Hottness! I can't wait for the release. Wanna hear for yourself... check out their spring show schedule HERE. They just may leak a bit of it during their performance. Speaking of their performance. Out and About Magazine (Wilmington, DE) named Revolution, I Love You’s
show at Kelly’s Logan House this past summer the Best Live Local Show of
2009 in their January 2010 issue. Go read it NOW.

Speaking of the Homey Awards! Yours Truly WILL be there, in the studio, reading off some winner's names. The show is this Sunday at 8pm ET on WSTW (www.WSTW.com). Tune in!

Hometown Heroes is a weekly program spotlighting the best music from the Delaware Valley aka Delaware, Maryland, New Jersey, Philadelphia. Hosted by Mark Rogers, Hometown Heroes is broadcast every Sunday, 8-10pm.

January 31, 2010 is the broadcast of the 52nd annual Grammy Awards. But it will also mark the broadcast of the 4th annual Hometown Heroes Homey Awards!

The Homeys are awarded to achievements in local music in 2009, including traditional Grammy-esque categories such as Album of the Year, Song of the Year, etc.

For a full list of 2009's nominations visit www.wstw.com/heroes/homeys.php.

P.S. The Harrisburg, PA edition of Fly Magazine will be re-running an article
about RILY in February, leading up to their performance at the Millenium Music Conference. Also, check back for my recap of the Spark 6 Birthday Party for Spark Magazine (Wilmington, DE) at Timothy’s on January 29. I'll be there VIP with RILY :P haha. I'm so immature. Doors open to the public at 10pm. See you there.

I-M

Piracy

Piracy Isn’t Killing Music’ Radiohead’s Guitarist Says
Written by Ernesto on January 24, 2010 TorrentFreak


Last year, Radiohead expressed their growing discomfort with record labels that abuse copyrights for their own benefit, while harassing their fans. In a recent interview, Radiohead guitarist Ed O’Brien said that he doesn’t believe piracy is killing the music industry, but that the industry will kill itself if it doesn’t adapt to the digital age.

Ticket Nation

Analysis: The Potential In Live Nation Entertainment
January 27, 2010 - Touring By Glenn Peoples, L.A.


Check out this article taken from billboard.biz

Here's the Live Nation-Ticketmaster merger in a nutshell: a company with nearly a 40% gross margin percentage and a slight but positive net profit (Ticketmaster) is going to build a live events powerhouse with a company with a 20% gross margin percentage and recurring annual losses (Live Nation).

The pair generated about $4.4 billion in revenues through the first three quarters of 2009 but their combined net loss was $33 million.

A merger makes sense if there are cost savings, or if the merged company can generate more revenue than the two companies could do on their own. These are called synergies, as in 2 + 2 = 5. Monday's news that the U.S. Department of Justice approved the companies' merger has the business world wondering what Live Nation plus Ticketmaster equals.

Check out the rest HERE.

Here's a much funnier version posted on Oregon Live. LINK

More HERE

Tommy Boy versus TuneCore

Tunecore's ticked off! I'm such an instigator... really this is a good article, very interesting read.
How people use Nielsen to hurt musicians (the below was posted by JeffCore at Tunecorner)



I read an article today at Digital Music News about comments by Tommy Silverman - founder of Tommy Boy and the New Music Seminar.

With all due respect, his information is wrong. But worse, the conclusions he reaches from this faulty information could be damaging to artists.

Some highlights include statements like:

Silverman counted 105,575 new album releases that year, and found that just 225 of those were new artists surpassing the 10,000 unit threshold for the first time. Of that, just 14 were do-it-yourself artists, unaffiliated with a major, indie, or other entity."

and

"What does this say about the Chris Anderson 'Long Tail' promise?" Silverman blogged in Musician Coaching. "Clearly the ease of making and distributing music does not benefit 'breaking' music. Breaking music requires mass exposure which requires luck or money or both. I can say with great authority that less new music is breaking now in America than any other time in history. Technology has not helped more great music rise to the top, it has inhibited it. I know this is a bold statement but it is true."

I wrote a response to the editor of the blog where the article appeared, I do not know if he will post it, but I feel so strongly about making certain word gets out, I am re-posting my response to Tommy's statements HERE.

Stranded (Haiti Mon Amour)

Weekend Highlight...

I loved this performance. Deep, emotional lyrics... Jay killed it.

Tomorrow's Telethon

When George does something... he does it BIG!

I think this might be the largest telethon event I've ever heard of. Although the one for Katrina was pretty large. Anyway, MTV with the help of George Clooney or should I say George Clooney with the help of MTV has organized "Hope for Haiti Now: A Global Benefit for Earthquake Relief" telethon, airing Friday at 8 p.m. ET/PT. And, it is going to be HUGE.

Talk about star power... this is going to be a ridiculously star studded event.
ALREADY BOOKED; Bono, Wyclef, Sting, Bruce Springsteen, Jay Z, Shakira, Justin Timberlake, Alicia Keys, Jennifer Hudson, Taylor Swift, Beyonce, Madonna, Bill Clinton, Rihanna, Haitian artist Emeline Michel, The Edge, Mary J. Blige, Dave Matthews, John Legend, Stevie Wonder, Keith Urban, Kid Rock, Sheryl Crow and Coldplay. That was the music... if you want to talk Hollywood then you would include; Ben Stiller, Chris Rock, Clint Eastwood, Denzel Washington, Halle Berry, Jon Stewart, Matt Damon, Morgan Freeman, Nicole Kidman, and Samuel L. Jackson. Is that everyone? Of course not, my blog isn't big enough to name everyone unfortunately but I'm sure by now you get the picture. I am a little ticked off though cause I didn't see anyone from the "Jersey Shore" listed???? I mean come on? Seriously? No Snooki?

This will be a star-studded two-hour telethon airing Friday that will feature musical performances from Los Angeles, New York City and London, plus live reporting from CNN's Anderson Cooper in Haiti. Expected highlights from the telecast include U2's Bono and The Edge joining Jay-Z and Rihanna in London for a one-of-a-kind performance.

Music performances from "Hope for Haiti Now" will be available for purchase and download on the iTunes Store. Beginning on Friday, iTunes customers will be able to exclusively pre-order both the Hope for Haiti Now full performance album ($7.99) and the full two-hour video telecast ($1.99). Pre-orders will be delivered in the days following the telethon. Individual audio performances will also be available for purchase and download for 99 cents each in the days following the telethon. Apple, the record labels and the artists will donate their share of the proceeds to Haiti relief funds managed by "Hope for Haiti Now" charities.

Wanna know where to tune in? How about where not to tune in?

"Hope for Haiti Now" will air across ABC, CBS, NBC, Fox, CNN, BET, The CW, HBO, MTV, VH1, CMT, PBS, TNT, Showtime, Comedy Central, Bravo, E! Entertainment, National Geographic Channel, Oxygen, G4, CENTRIC, Current TV, Fuse, MLB Network, EPIX, Palladia, SoapNet, Style, Discovery Health, Planet Green, CNN en Español, HBO Latino, and Canadian networks including CBC Television, CTV, Global Television, and MuchMusic. The event will be live streamed online globally across sites including YouTube, Hulu, MySpace, Fancast, AOL, MSN.com, Yahoo, Bing.com, BET.com, CNN.com, MTV.com, VH1.com, and Rhapsody and on mobile via Alltel, AT&T, Sprint, Verizon, and FloTV. "Hope for Haiti Now" will also air internationally on BET International, CNN International, National Geographic, and MTV Networks International, which is available in 640 million homes worldwide. "Hope for Haiti Now" will be available non-exclusively to all terrestrial radio stations around the globe and SIRIUS XM Radio as a one time only radio broadcast via the MTV Radio Network and Westwood One.

"Hope for Haiti Now" will begin accepting donations at 12 p.m. ET/9 a.m. PT on Friday via the following methods:

» Online: www.hopeforhaitinow.org
» Phone: 877-99-HAITI
» Text: Text "GIVE" to 50555
» Mail: Hope For Haiti Now Fund, Entertainment Industry Foundation, 1201 West 5th Street, Suite T-700, Los Angeles, CA 90017

"Hope for Haiti Now" is produced by Joel Gallen and Tenth Planet Productions, in collaboration with Viacom's MTV Networks and George Clooney.

Links from which I pulled all of this information are below.

http://www.people.com/people/article/0,,20338134,00.html

http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1630121/20100120/knowles_beyonce.jhtml

http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1630161/20100121/madonna.jhtml

Mike McCarry Release Party

1-23-2010

Keep it going!

Haiti Update: $21 Million In Donations Pour In By Text Message

Donations by text message have now exceeded $16 million for the Haiti earthquake relief effort in what will likely become one of the largest mobile-giving campaigns ever.







The tally is being kept by the Mobile Giving Foundation, a non profit organization that helps others raise funds through mobile. It is helping more than a dozen organizations, including the Red Cross, The Salvation Army, UNICEF, the Clinton Bush Haiti Fund and World Vision, raise money to help out the impoverished nation. The organization said Sunday that donations jumped to $16 million, after reporting $10 million on Friday. Today, the number grew to $21 million.

To read the full article visit HERE.

Wyclef's LIVE PRESS CONFERENCE ON THE STATE OF HAITI

LIVE AT
WYCLEF.COM.
YELE.ORG.

Happy MLK Day!

Just wanted to wish everyone a happy MLK day to all of those that took off, those that had off and people like me who had to work :( We only get major holidays off here in the media... and most of those holidays are still maybes. Ahh, but that doesn't mean anything right?! You can still celebrate no matter what's on your agenda. Just try not to make it a lazy day! Get out and make a difference! That's what King did! :)

Making a difference on MLK day! Click HERE!

I-M

Golden Globes 2010

Congratulations to the cast of The Hangover. One of the funnier movies this past year... well deserving. "It's called a satchel. Indiana Jones wears one!" Great movie didn't think I was going to like it but LOVED it when I saw it.

Phil Wenneck: You're not really wearing that are you?

Alan Garner: Wearing what?

Phil Wenneck: The man purse. You actually gonna wear that or are you just fuckin' with me?

Alan Garner: It's where I keep all my things. Get a lot of compliments on this. Plus it's not a purse, it's called a satchel. Indiana Jones wears one.

Phil Wenneck: So does Joy Behar.



The Sachel quote actually went viral enough to spawn some facebook groups... if you wanna join em the links are below.

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Its-not-a-purse-its-called-a-satchel-Indiana-Jones-wears-one/373980025116

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Its-a-satchel-Indiana-Jones-wears-one/198264731375

More...

Robert Downey Jr as himself and other winners.

Pants on the Ground or no Pants at all...

Pants on the ground or no pants at all... last week's headlines seemed to pay tribute to trousers from London to Atlanta.

First, "Pants on the Ground." I absolutely LOVE this.

Pants on the ground
Pants on the ground
Lookin like a fool with you pants on the ground
Gold in your mouth
Hat turned sideways, pants hit the ground
Call yourself a cool cat looking like a fool
Walking down town
With your pants on the ground!

I would have seriously sent him to Hollywood. Guess that's why they didn't call me to judge. I mean come on! If we can have Sanjaya on for about 5 weeks why can't we have the General on for at least 3? I mean someone get this dude a show, and if that's all he has in em' get him a ghostwriter, dammit I want more. "Lookin Like a Foo wit Yo Pants on da Groun"



Congratulations, General Larry Platt! You've joined the esteemed ranks of William Hung, Scooter Girl and Bikini Girl as an instantly famous American Idol reject. (Breanne L. Heldman) Instantly famous is an understatement. This thing became viral at light speed hitting all the major social networking sites and even infecting Jimmy Fallon.



Next, It's the 9th Annual No-Pants on the Subway Day!

Commuters in London were yesterday treated the bizarre sight of hundreds of fellow Tube travellers wrapped up warm in jackets, scarves, hats and mittens - and nothing on their bare, pale legs.

Women clad in skimpy underwear, and some men in even skimpier underwear (though most wore boxers) crowded the Tube in London - and the underground networks in New York and Mexico City - to the bemusement of their fellow passengers.

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/worldnews/article-1242278/No-Pants-Day-How-Tube-undie-ground-day-only.html#ixzz0colSMD1h



Pants on the ground
Pants on the ground
Lookin like a fool with you pants on the ground
Gold in your mouth
Hat turned sideways, pants hit the ground
Call yourself a cool cat looking like a fool
Walking down town
With your pants on the ground!

hahahahahaha sorry I had to one more time!

I-M

Addicted

If you’re a young male and a fan of the NFL, chances are, you’ve probably played Madden quite a few times. I can contest that this game is one of the most addicting video games ever invented. I was once addicted, and it is something I struggle with everyday, but I’m making progress. Now, my mission is to help others who may have become addicted to this game as well. If you answer yes to any of these symptoms listed below, please seek help immediately.

You have severe pain or soreness in your thumbs. This comes from playing more than 5 hours a day of Madden. Constantly pressing the buttons on the controller causes severe fatigue or pain in the thumbs. Usually, players addicted to Madden will ignore this symptom, and continue to play. This only worsens the condition.

After owning the game for only a week, you notice the game often freezes, yet there are no scratches on the disc and nothing wrong with your video game console. This occurs from unusual long hours of play. The disc has been played so much in a week, that it malfunctions. This is extremely rare, but there are documented cases of this happening.

You are constantly looking for Madden tips online or have purchased a book that gives you tips.

When watching a real football game, you use Madden terms to describe plays. For example, “Man, Ray Lewis should have hit sticked him,” or “Why didn’t Tomlinson truck stick him?!”

When watching a real football game, and your favorite team is faced with 4th and 10 in the first quarter on their own 20, you think it’s perfectly fine for them to go for it.

When watching a real football game, you expect two or three amazing plays per quarter. This usually happens in Madden, and many players who are addicted often confuse virtual reality with reality.

You have developed knowledge of the game of football, that only a head coach in the NFL would possess.

Instead of sleeping… You play Madden

Instead of studying for finals… You play Madden

Instead of going to class… You play Madden

If you are losing weight... you get the idea. Posted by Marquis Chapman (All Talk Sports)

Seriously, if this is happening to you please seek assistance... I'm not kidding this isn't something to be taken lightly!!!!! It's Maddonitis!

I DON'T KNOW WHAT'S REAL ANYMORE!!! :(





















All Looks Real To Me!?

If You Don't Know Me By Now...

One of Philadelphia's greats left us yesterday at the age of 59. Teddy Pendergrass was an R&B/Soul legend whose hits "Turn Off the Lights" and "If You Don't Know Me By Now" set the mood for millions of fans. Thanks for all you have given us Teddy! You will forever be an inspiration.

Full article on Philly.com HERE.

I-M

Great Write Up!

Excellent write up on our boys The Quelle Source in "The Indie Handbook" this week. Big thank you to Kristin. She talks about the massive amount of energy you get while listening to their new album "Enjoy The Ridge." I get it Kristin... it's hard not to dance isn't it? When you mix that with the fact that their tunes take you back to your childhood it's an instant rewind on nearly every track. Check out the article HERE.

The Blockley Pourhouse

Upcoming... 1-22-2010 Amazing show at www.TheBlockley.com (American Buffalo, The Quelle Source, Long Walk Home) Do It!

Don't Forget! OUT NOW! The Quelle Source Debut LP Click Album Cover

Priceless

The Worst Speeches of All Time: Christmas Fable

Atom.com: Funny Videos | Reality | The Worst Speeches Of All Time

My Cup Runneth Over?

Seated at the podium inside the Dino Lucarelli Media Center Tuesday afternoon were Browns president Mike Holmgren, head coach Eric Mangini and the team's two newest hires, general manager Tom Heckert, Jr. and vice president, business administration Bryan Wiedmeier. CLICK HERE TO WATCH THE PRESS CONFERENCE

Below, new GM Tom Heckert recently snatched from the Eagles



Four men with eleven picks in this year's draft. If this doesn't stop the bleeding I'm not sure what will. Quality football guys are now in charge of the organization. What an exciting time for the city of Cleveland. Now, let's find a quarterback... is he in the building or on the draft board?

A Review... Adam Schein

<br/><a href="http://www.bing.com/videos/watch/video/schein-pics-week-16/12pt2ts4?fg=sharenoembed" target="_new"title="Schein Pics: Week 16">Video: Schein Pics: Week 16</a>

WAR

The world stage is set for WAR tomorrow night at 8pm on NBC. What a build up! I've been bumpin' Beanie Sigel's "I Can Feel It In The Air" for the past couple of days. It's games like this that fuel my passion to write so much about football on what is supposed to be an indie music blog :) I know... I can't help it! There's a fire inside of me that's fed from seeing two proud franchises face off in a battle for everything in one of the NFL's most storied RIVALRYS. WAR BABY!


LINK

What a storyline...



Will Andy call the perfect game? What could he possibly come up with to score on this stifling Dallas defense that has been one of the stingiest in history over the past couple of weeks? Can the Eagles bounce back?

Yes, I'm a Browns fan but you know where my heart lies in this one!

Breaking News...

According to a "undisclosed source" Pat Kirwin, Sirius NFL Radio Host, reported today that Mike Holmgren will ultimately decide to retain the embattled Cleveland Browns coach Eric Mangini for a second season. Pat's words were that a birdie whispered in his ear saying that it's a 100 percent chance that Mangini isn't leaving... he also went on to say that it was a pretty big birdie that told him and not a little one.


I know how a majority of the fans are going to feel about this, but I honestly think this is good for the Brownies. I think that Eric Mangini can really grow with the backing of a guy like Mike Holmgren. Holmgren knows how to get an offense up and running. So for me, that offsets the fact that I'm still very uncomfortable with Brian Daboll but still very comfortable with Rob Ryan. It's a new day, and Mangenius gets to stay.

I-M

Calming Cribbs

Joshua Cribbs, known to many NFL fans as "the only reason someone might ever watch a Cleveland Browns game," is upset and wants to leave the organization.

Here's the short version of the story: Cribbs is a great player, and he's still playing on his six-year, $6.77 million rookie contract, which makes him grossly underpaid by NFL standards. The Browns have offered a meager raise to $1.4 million per year, and say they won't budge. Not now, and not ever.

Thus, Cribbs is upset -- hurt, even -- and his agent says he's going to formally ask for a trade. Here's Jason La Canfora at the NFL Network, quoting Cribbs' agent, J.R. Rickert:

“We’re going to formally put in a request for a trade,” Rickert said. “He will not set foot in that facility again. If they had offered even something like $2.5 million per season we could have worked with them, but to me this offer is indefensible.” Author MJD Yahoo Sports http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/blog/shutdown_corner/post/Cribbs-wants-to-be-traded-Holmgren-is-about-to-?urn=nfl,212278

Personally, I think Cribbs needs to chill just for a bit. No one can argue that he isn't worth the money. The man should definitely be paid but now is not the time for all the drama. Cleveland is smack dab in the middle of restructuring the entire organization. Mike Holmgren doesn't even have a place to live yet. The Browns don't even have a GM yet! Calm down Cribbs! Give it a couple more weeks... maybe even a month or so. You will get paid. I would be surprised to see Holmgren let Cribbs leave.

I-M

Get ya Throwback on!

Still Waiting...